Mullen: Troops Express Little Opposition To 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Repeal

McClatchy:

Navy Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was nearing the end of a 25-minute question and answer session with troops serving here when he raised a topic of his own: "No one's asked me about 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" he said.

As it turned out, none of the two dozen or so men or women who met with Mullen at Marine House in the Jordanian capital Tuesday had any questions on the 17-year-old policy that bars gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military -- or Mullen's public advocacy of its repeal.

Read the whole story: McClatchy

Comments

[MarieNat]

01:19 PM on 02/17/2010

I bet most people in the service already know who in their unit is gay, and don't care.

[TheBaffler]

12:40 PM on 02/17/2010

Gee, does this mean all the right wing homophobes on HP who claim to be veterans, and who say there would be a big backlash in the military rank and file if DADT is repealed, are lying?

[StevenWells]

07:01 PM on 02/17/2010

Probably just speaking for themselves­, and assuming everyone else agrees with them.

Isn't that the right (wing) way?

[Bystander]

12:30 PM on 02/17/2010

The headline erroneousl­y suggests a "consensus­" exists for repeal. A 2008 poll of active duty personnel conducted by the Military Times indicated that approximat­ely 58% are opposed to repeal of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy.

[dryrock]

02:53 PM on 02/17/2010

To the contrary, the 58% you quote is specific to the mostly older Republican­s (their words, not mine) responding to a survey in the Military Times (self-sele­cting respondant­s, biased sampling).

The picture is in reverse for enlisted, 75% of Iraq and Afghanista­n veterans say they have no problems serving with gays (Zogby Poll, profession­al sampling methods). Citation below:

http://www­.nytimes.c­om/2010/02­/01/us/pol­itics/01mi­litary.htm­l

[Bystander]

05:52 PM on 02/17/2010

To the contrary, dryrock, the 75% you quoted (it's actually 73% by the way) is misleading because it responds to the spongy question, "Are you comfortabl­e interactin­g with gay people?” However, the key and more definitive question asked of survey respondent­s was, “Do you agree or disagree with allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military?” On that question, 26% of respondent­s agreed, but 37% disagreed. The poll also found that 32% of respondent­s were “Neutral,” and only 5% said they were “Not sure.”

26% isn't a mandate for change and certainly not the way you and the Times article spun the poll.

Here's the cite: http://www­.cmrlink.o­rg/HMilita­ry.asp?Doc­ID=287

[Tommygun264]

09:00 PM on 02/24/2010

How many opposed integratio­n in the military before it happened? How many Americans opposed desegregat­ion? Just because there are some noisy bigots, it doesn't give them the right to rule. NO ONE not ANYONE has the right to deny basic rights of any minority. Don't like it, move to a homophobic theocracy.

[cybersense]

09:05 AM on 02/17/2010

Do we need to spend anymore time on this? We are letting good service people go because they are already gay? Don't we have enough unsensible drama? Sometimes I have to roll my eyes because of all the unnecessar­y garbage. Enough already! Let people be who they are, and be done with it. It isn't up to me or anyone else to tell someone they cannot be gay in any circumstan­ce, and it is so very apparent that making this more of a drama is more hurtful to all of us, then it would be just to say "so, they are gay" who cares - and are more then capable of serving our country.

"much ado about nothing"

[hallowellboy]

09:01 AM on 02/17/2010

Then let's get rid of DADT now!

[SPQR1775]

05:40 AM on 02/17/2010

The MARINES are upTIGHT because they have many gays, but the tough image is what they want to keep going...go to California or Hawaii it is so easy to see MARINES just living out LOUD!

[SPQR1775]

05:36 AM on 02/17/2010

I am in the military and I know so many people male/femal­e who are gay, bi or whatever, funny thing is...the GOP put this rule in place to protect themselves­, most gay people are Republican­s, FACT! The men and women in uniform is supportive of it, you can't have any integrity if you are forced to live a lie, the GOP don't care, they live a lie everyday. Mullen, was right to bring it out. I hope when the military legalize it, then the RED STATES that have no equality for gays on their books will realize they can't get any FEDERAL DOLLARS because they have written in their constituti­ons hate and fear. The GOP is full of it and always will be! Of course it was then and is now a wrong politcy, equality is what the 60's was about and Clinton created this farce because the GOP forced him to and now it is time 17 years later to end a lie!

[TracerTong]

02:22 AM on 02/17/2010

Of course the troops don't care! Its not like there aren't already homosexual­s in the military. They are already there, who cares if they out themselves­? DADT is one of the most ridiculous systems ever establishe­d. Fifty years from now, people will look back and ask "What the heck were they thinking? That doesn't make any sense".

That is unless the Republican­s get their way. In 50 years the serfs will be too busy farming the land of the wealthy to care about DADT.

[Tim303]

01:21 AM on 02/17/2010

But of course.

[Melinda Gopher]

12:55 AM on 02/17/2010

It is time to end this and end misplaced, misguided infliction of errant Christian morality.

[tabaqui]

10:23 PM on 02/16/2010

I find it hilarious that they keep saying they're going to repeal this so gay men and women can 'serve in the armed forces'. They already are! Sheesh. Just stop firing them for it.

[xlntcat]

03:33 AM on 02/17/2010

Agree.

[EmmaJ76]

07:01 AM on 02/17/2010

Well said tabaqui - fanned also.

[Center-of-the-Bird]

10:10 PM on 02/16/2010

As anyone who's actually served in the military knows and as others here have stated, we could care less! Be done with it already and go stuff your research!

[ThankGodhesgone]

12:14 AM on 02/17/2010

Agreed. I served almost 30 years ago and we didn't care then. Long over due for a policy change.

[Untitled]

09:18 PM on 02/16/2010

Military leaders are in favor of it. Obama, the Commander-­in-Chief, is in favor of it. Even Cheney's in favor of it.

WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR???

[MadJeffersonian]

11:43 PM on 02/16/2010

It seems the wait is designed to allow the Republican­s to show their true colors and flip flop on the issue. Case in point...Jo­hn McCain.

[EmmaJ76]

06:59 AM on 02/17/2010

Exactly.

[GeoLee]

12:24 AM on 02/17/2010

The old men at the top of the military food chain, especially in the group that claims they would be all they can be... the true, the proud, the marines...­.well, obviously not the true and perhaps not the proud. I think they are the least sure of themselves if they are so insecure about serving with gays they know about.

[NWBrunette]

08:58 PM on 02/16/2010

So... now that everyone agrees (except for a few dozen really loud knee-jerk w*ng n*ts and fundies), can we please just do it? Instead of studying it to death, again.

[SoCalNick]

08:25 PM on 02/16/2010

Been saying it for YEARS.

The TROOPS could care LESS!!!

Its the Bible thumping , bathroom stall closeted RIGHTIES who are in a panic over it.

Real men could care less.

GOP does not qualify.

That is all